From the Archives #47 — October 2019

By Sebastián Encina, Collections Manager

November 2019 marks the ten-year anniversary of the opening of the William E. Upjohn Wing of the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology. This expansion, a generous gift of Ed and Mary Meader, allowed the Kelsey Museum to upgrade our galleries and storage space, and expand what we offer to the museum-going community. With the new wing, the Kelsey was able to display many more artifacts — from a few hundred to well over one thousand.

Newberry Hall, the original home of the Kelsey Museum, housed and displayed our artifacts for over 90 years. Though not originally designed as a museum, the building provided a unique and beautiful space to highlight the Kelsey collections. For this month’s “From the Archives,” we present photographs that show the Newberry galleries before the Upjohn Wing was constructed. In those times, the galleries were split between Egypt and the Near East in one room, and Roman/Etruscan art in the other. Special exhibitions were mounted in the remaining spaces.

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Views over time of Newberry Hall, the North, South, Turret, Hallway, and Classroom Galleries. Dates not known.

 

The primary gallery spaces were housed in what are now the lecture hall and public programs room. The former classroom gallery is now office space for the Kelsey Education staff. The “Turret Gallery” and “Fireplace Gallery” now house the office of the Kelsey’s associate director. Even the hallway had been used to display artifacts. Today, this space displays only prints of photographs from our Archives.

Long-time visitors to the Kelsey will find some of these images familiar, as it was only about 12 years ago that we closed the museum to prepare to move the objects to the new Upjohn Wing. Many of the artifacts seen on display in these photographs are still on display in the current galleries. Others are no longer on view due to various reasons including curatorial decisions and returned loans. 

Though there is a charm to the old displays, we’ve definitely upgraded in many ways. The new galleries provide the objects with proper climate control and improved security. The Newberry served us well for many years, but we are incredibly happy to have Upjohn today.

From the Archives 28 — March 2018

BY SEBASTIAN ENCINA, Collections Manager

As many of our friends have noticed, there is a lot of construction happening around the Kelsey Museum. To the north, the Trotter Multicultural Center is creating a new home for itself. To the south, LSA is expanding in order to house the Opportunity Hub. Both of these are exciting projects that will pay dividends for the Kelsey, with new guests and neighbors we can partner with, bring to the Museum, and be friends with.

The construction around us speaks to the long and constantly changing history of the U-M campus. For years, we have become accustomed to our neighbors: the trees to our north and LSA to our south. But as we have seen around campus, nothing remains the same for too long.

For this month’s “From the Archives,” we present two photographs showing how  Newberry Hall appeared in the early 1900s, when it was still the future home of the Kelsey Museum (the Kelsey occupied Newberry Hall in 1928). In these photographs, taken by George R. Swain, Newberry Hall had different neighbors. To the north, trees and the Helen Newberry Residence, which still stands. To the south, a house — though not much in the photos gives us any clues about it, or indeed if it was a house at all.

For people who have been working at or visiting the Kelsey for years, the surprise lies to the west. Where Upjohn is now there used to be a parking lot, big enough for 20 cars. However, in these photos, particularly M8.1087, we see the structure that the parking lot replaced. It  looks like a house, though no further information accompanies these images.

Through word of mouth, there have been suggestions that gas stations also used to be near the Kelsey, but we do not see that in these images.

Spend enough time on the U-M campus and you will notice much construction throughout the area. It seems the University is constantly expanding and changing. Going through the archives and photographs, we begin to understand  that this is not new. Changes have been happening since U-M arrived in Ann Arbor. And it is safe to say changes will continue for many years to come.

View of Newberry Hall, future home of the Kelsey Museum, ca. 1900. Kelsey Museum Archives M8.1087. Photo by George R. Swain.

View of Newberry Hall, ca. 1915–1920. Kelsey Museum Archives M8.1088. Photo by George R. Swain.

From the Archives 23 — August 2017

By SEBASTIÁN ENCINA, Collections Manager

In the coming months, the Kelsey Museum is going to be seeing some changes to our neighborhood. The new Trotter Multicultural building as well as the expansion of LSA for their Opportunity Hub will both be commencing shortly. Normally, any construction is nerve-wracking for museums, as vibrations can cause deterioration to artifacts. With this activity being so close to the Kelsey, we will be seeing even more potential movement in the galleries and storage. Throw on top of all this the fact that there will be construction on two fronts, so vibrations will be steady and ongoing for a long period of time.

Small and big vibrations will cause artifacts to move, but the shaking can cause flaking and other breaking to occur. If you wander the galleries and see something amiss, please inform security or notify museum staff if they are in the galleries at the time.  Fortunately, the Kelsey is staffed by high caliber professionals who are already on top of this, and have a plan to mitigate the situation. Thanks to them, we expect to see no damage during this construction period.

For this month’s “From the Archives,” we look back when the opposite situation was taking place. Back in 2007, the Kelsey was undergoing its own construction. This project affected our neighbors, the students living in Newberry and Barbour Residences, as well as our colleagues in LSA. For the Kelsey, this was a long time coming, as calls for a new building for the collections had been written decades before. Finally, in 2009, the doors at the William E. Upjohn Exhibit Wing opened to the public, the culmination of several years’ worth of work.

Those who have been with the Kelsey Museum for a long time will remember that the space where Upjohn is now was a parking lot. About 20–25 cars could fit here, often for staff of the residences and the Kelsey. Much to the chagrin of several people who enjoyed parking close to work, the lot was removed and the new wing went up instead.

Images shared here show the construction at different phases. While construction was underway, Collections Manager Sebastián Encina went around photographing the progress from various angles, including the roof of LSA, the Student Activities Building, the former Kelsey archives room, even street views. We are now fortunate to have this collection of images that encapsulate a portion of our own history. It reminds us how much work goes into the planning and actualization of a construction project. At the time, it was difficult to imagine what the end result was going to look like. Now, ten years later, we have a whole history in this building already, many stories shared, many names and voices passing through.

 

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Construction of Original Wing

Construction of Newberry Hall, now Kelsey Museum of Archaeology, in 1888, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.